The triad of strength

The triad

We have a triad of landmarks to use while coaching. These are the feet, the hips, and the shoulders. Nobody can watch the entire human body while coaching. Focus on the triad and see more of what is involved. Athletes need to be stable, produce maximal forces, and align bio-mechanically. We are looking at the triad relative to all of this.

We should never be perfectly upright. It is terrible for the back.

 Feet – the width of one’s stance is a major consideration in training. Shoulder width or slightly wider is optimal for stability. Hips width is optimal for vertical force production and mobility. So, foot positioning is relative to the forces we must produce.

Heavy lifts require stability. Stand with the feet a little wider than shoulder width for heavy lifts relative to one’s absolute strength. A clean, a curl, a shoulder press are not absolute strength movements. Squats, deadlifts, RDL, and good mornings are absolute strength movements.

Be very careful with people who use this language.
They do not understand natural human movements.

Weightlifters jump very well. Cleans, jerks, and snatches involve jumping. I do not know anyone who jumps, maximally, with a shoulder width stance, go hips width for jumping. I will save the Pythagorean Theorem for another discussion. We want the forces applied to the bar or whatever we are lifting not lost to unnatural angles. Stance needs to be hips width for maximal force production involving any change of direction with a barbell.

The natural angle of the toes from the hips is between 6 and 13 degrees of outward rotation. What does this mean for the average lifter? Turn your toes out slightly and track (aim) your knees in that direction. You will produce maximal forces, the definition of strength, and move more powerfully. Parallel foot positions are uneducated and unnatural injurious even. Do not squat with parallel feet and do not take further training guidance from anyone requiring you to do so. 

Weight sharing should track through the hips. Keep weights on your heels and the outside edges of the feet to accomplish this. If one is on the middle of the feet or even the front of the feet weight is distributed through the legs too much. Always, always, put the weight on your hips. Distribute the weight through the heels and outside edges of one’s feet to accomplish this.

Cleans, jerks, and snatches require lifters to replace the feet after squatting under the bar has started. As we have discussed, the pull requires a hip width stance. The squat requires a more broad arrangement of our feet (wider stance). Stand, jump, replace the feet at shoulder width (not much wider) while squatting under the bar, and stand up after absorbing the weight.

Do not ruin your knees.

Hips – the power of our hips are our hamstrings. The gluteus always get top billing because they are a pretty muscle group like the abs. Once there is an additional weight on the system the primary hip extensors are the hamstrings. Without additional weight the gluteus are the primary extensors. If we are producing maximal forces, strong, then the hamstrings are primary and the gluteus are stabilizing only. Positioning of the hips is paramount in athletics. “Go into the athletic position!” it originates at the hips like all movements had better.

The “CORE” is given a lot of credit these days. It is easy to market the “CORE” since most Americans are fat, have back pain, and want to look like the fitness models on T.V. the midsection, as we used to call it, is the original CORE. The new generation of “trainers” renamed the midsection to take ownership. They have not earned the position to rename anything. They ignore the fundamentals. Once again, I digress.

The midsection is responsible for keeping the upper body in-time with the hips. This is a considerable task. The hips are our strength. If the abdomen is soft the midsection is weak. If the abdomen is taught the

Move from your hips!

midsection is strong. Try to tackle a running back with soft midsection and fail. Hit the running back with a strong midsection and drive him as much as you want. No matter whether the front of the hips is tilted in an anterior or posterior orientation the abdomen must be fully engaged to produce maximal forces. I used to have a coach who had only one cue he used while one was squatting; “TIGHT’.  Tuck your hips and extend your back is my first instruction regarding the midsection.

  

Shoulders – the head is part of the shoulders while lifting heavy weights. There are many schools of thought when it comes to shoulder blade retraction. Retract your blades if you require shoulder stability. No matter what body part we speak of we must keep that body part as close to our hips as possible. Do not reach too far with your hips if you are not extending your back. The system should be contained (relatively compact).

Remember the triad. Keep the feet, head, and shoulders in line. Keep everything close to the box around your feet. If the hips go six inches behind the box a similar mass will need to go six inches in front of the box. Contain the system. Go heavy, at least occasionally. If you cannot lift double your body weight on a squat or a deadlift you need to lift heavier...

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